Incorporating writing into interventions to reduce problem drinking among college students

Personalized normative feedback (PNF) interventions have been found to reduce problematic drinking among heavy drinking undergraduates. PNF includes strategies that correct the misperceptions that exist regarding the prevalence of certain behaviors, such as alcohol use. A new study assessed the impact of incorporating a writing component into PNF interventions, and whether or not expressive writing alone can impact drinking behaviors.

In this study, undergraduates who were identified to be heavy drinkers randomly received one of 4 interventions: PNF about their alcohol use, expressive writing about a negative heavy drinking occasion, PNF plus expressive writing, or feedback about their use in a brief online intervention.

The results showed that out of the four types of interventions studied, the PNF plus writing reduced alcohol related problems significantly compared to all of the other interventions. Both interventions that included PNF reduced perceived norms about alcohol use among the students in this study. Expressive writing alone did not decrease problematic drinking outcomes.

Take Away: Personalized normative feedback and expressive writing reflecting on a negative drinking experience was shown to be effective in intervening in heavy drinking college students and reducing their perceived norms. Expressive writing alone did not have the same magnitude of effect.

Young, C.M., Neighbors, C. (2019) Incorporating Writing into a Personalized Normative Feedback Intervention to Reduce Problem Drinking among College Students. Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. doi.org/10.1111/acer.13995.